GenAI Usage in B2B Buying - Jury is Still Out
Hank Barnes
Chief of Research-Tech Buying Behavior, Gartner - Exploring the Challenges and Opportunities Surrounding Tech Buying Decisions
Over a few different studies that Gartner has run recently on B2B Buying (some tech specific and some broader), we've been asking about the use of GenAI tools in the buying process.
The results, for buyers, have been mixed. In our tech studies, we generally found that buyers that used GenAI were more likely to have regret, particularly if they leaned heavily into GenAI as the primary source of their research.
In other studies, GenAI improved outcomes.
One more data point to share that I think sheds some added light. In our latest buying study (that is showing improvement as I've mentioned), we again asked if GenAI tools were used. But I wanted to take a look at GenAI in combination with other third party resources (analysts, service providers, peers, etc). The chart below (and teased above) tells an interesting story.
Basically, the use of Gen AI and only a couple other data sources seems to be the least effective (GenAI only was the least, but there were less than 30 respondents, so i did not show it). As the variety of sources used for third party insights and validation grew, so did high quality deals.
But further, the use of GenAI with these sources is better than not using GenAI at all.
There is still more to learn, but GenAI as a decision augmenter still seems like the best path. Using GenAI as a shortcut alone, is not.
We'll see where this goes......
Marketing and Business Strategy for B2B SaaS
4 周Hank Barnes I wonder if those using just Gen AI and no or few other sources suffer because of the models still being based on old information. Those that use other sources may find they are accessing more current information.
Director Analyst at Gartner
1 个月Interestingly this dataset also shows GenAI search is being used by business buyers 2x more often than traditional search (even higher for IT personas). It’s time to rethink those traditional paid search campaigns.
Principal Consultant - Digital Business Advisory
1 个月Hank Barnes, thanks for sharing your latest insights. I suspect many B2B buying teams are far from achieving GenAI user mastery. McKinsey research indicates the typical talent pool in a large enterprise is more like a talent puddle. Few are skilled in using the full spectrum of GenAI tool capabilities in their work. Moreover, they use one 'approved' tool and lack the knowledge to choose the optimal tool for a specific task. Given time, flexible AI governance, and more experience, your use case findings may change.
Vice President, Gartner: Sales and Marketing Strategy, B2B Behavioural Research
1 个月Seems to validate the story we see in the data - you can't hack your way to a good decision.